Early studies of three welfare-to-work programs indicate that adolescents belonging to families involved in welfare-to-work programs have lower academic achievement and more behavioral problems than children of other welfare families. The 1996 federal welfare overhaul was expected to have a positive impact on adolescents since it was hypothesized that adolescents would view their working parent as a role model. Instead, the preliminary studies give rise to concerns that adolescents are taking on adult roles and that working parents have less time to monitor their children.
See Tamar Lewin, The New York Times, July 30, 2001